Remorse vs change

If I do something wrong, the job is not to wallow in remorse but to change. Change what? My beliefs, my thinking, my behaviour. Doesn't God remove our character defects? Yes, although if my defect is being late for work, God won't get me out of bed on time, I will have to set an alarm and then get up. I might need to ask God for the power to do that, but the initiative must come from me. It's no good hiding behind powerlessness and the wording of Steps Six and Seven. God will do for me what I cannot do for myself but God won't do for me what I can do for myself.

Remorse and self-reproach does not help, by the way, and are not a substitute for change. There are no points in the programme for morbid reflection.